This section is intended to provide a background or context to the invention that is recited in the claims. The description herein may include concepts that could be pursued, but are not necessarily ones that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art to the description and claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
In recent years, flat panel televisions have become enormously popular in both commercial and residential sectors. As the prices for plasma and liquid crystal display (“LCD”) flat panel displays have continued to fall, and the quality for the same devices have improved, more and more businesses and individuals have purchased such devices for both home and business purposes.
One of the advantages of flat panel display devices that customers have found particular appealing is their relatively low thickness. Because conventional “tube” televisions have a relatively large depth, the placement options for such devices are quite limited. In the residential setting, most users require a television stand or large entertainment center to house the television. Such stands or entertainment centers can take up significant floor space, which is often undesirable. In the commercial or educational setting, users will often install large overhead mounting systems that can contain the television. However, these systems usually require professional installation and, once the television is secured to the mount, it is often difficult to access and adjust due to its height. With flat panel televisions, on the other hand, users are presented with a relatively new option: mounting the television directly to a mounting surface such as a wall. By mounting the television to the wall, the user can eliminate consumption of potentially valuable floor space.
Various systems have been developed for mounting flat panel displays to a wall or similar surface. A number of such systems comprised “fixed” mounting systems, in which the flat panel display when mounted, remains in substantially the same position unless the user at least partially disassembles the mounting system. Other mounting systems are adjustable in that a user can alter the orientation of the flat panel display relating to the mounting surface without at least partially disassembling the mounting system.